Living from a New Perspective
by shining-fortune
Summary: The storyline of Black and White told by a Team Plasma grunt. The grunt voices her point of view throughout the story, describes her beliefs in the beginning, and her interactions with Touya, N, fellow grunts, and of course, her Pokemon. As the story transpires, the grunt's beliefs are challenged and shifted as she reaches a new perspective on her beliefs and what is truly right.
1. Chapter 1

I haven't been here as long as some of the other grunts of Team Plasma, but I was here for a while. I was trained for this, trained to do what the Sages - Ghetsis - had planned out for the sake of our Lord N. No... for the sake of the entire world! You wouldn't tell from looking, but the Pokemon were suffering from the hands of trainers, always being mistreated instead of being treated as equals, or even the greater beings of creatures that they were. And as such actions would suffice, my lord wished to separated Pokemon from their trainers, keeping them safe from whatever harm came their way. They would live the lives that was so rightfully theirs, without humans interfering.

I doubt that I made a good impression on either Lord N's or Ghetsis' speech pattern when it comes to these kind of things... But I think I was pretty close on nailing it down.

I suppose one would wonder what a person like me is doing here in an organization like Team Plasma. Whenever "Team" is mentioned, it's usually labeled as a evil syndicate. Organizations like Team Rocket or Team Galactic, or even Team Magma and Team Aqua come to mind (Trust me, I did my research), but Team Plasma is different I think. We don't fight in order to conquer the world or anything like that. We fight with the Pokemon's best interest at heart. We fight for our lord's vision of a world where Pokemon are safe from harm, like the beautiful beings they are. A world of Black and White.

Now, the bosses of the past Team Syndicates were cruel bastards, who would gain at nothing to achieve their goal. They would hijack Radio Buildings, instill fear in the hearts of the cities, and ever put Pokemon - Legendary or not - in harm's way.

But Lord N... Lord N is different from those guys. He's so pure. I haven't even been around him that long, and I could just tell. He has a pure heart with the Pokemon's best interest at heart. I think he can talk to them too... It's pretty cool. I wish I had an ability like that, I think I could understand them if we spoke Pokemon language.

But back to subject; Team Plasma fights for the well-being of Pokemon. Nothing more, Nothing less. Our plans are going to start at full throttle now. And I personally can't wait to play a part in changing the world.

* * *

Us grunts really do look the same huh? The boys and the girls, we're like the Nurse Joy's that's all across the region. Only difference is, not all of us are related in no way shape or form. Actually I'm glad, there are some people here that I wouldn't want to be related to, thank Arceus. As to why we just look like we all popped out of the copying machine, it's part of the uniform. To make us all united I guess. Some of the guys here had their hair natural like that, others dyed it and put in contacts so they could match. I'm lucky I was born like this! Looking the part alone take a lot of work! Names aren't too important for us either. We're either Grunt #1 or Grunt #2 and so on. The names that are necessary to remember are the Seven Sages, which includes Ghetsis, and of course our Lord N.

My name is Lily for the record. But that's not important.

For this mission, all of us were really eager to begin our life's mission. Some with different reasons than others. I knew that I wanted to do our Lord and Sages proud and make every mission a success, no matter what the cost. For that cause, all of us were given a Pokemon as our tools for liberation. Some got one, others were lucky bastards and got six. I was one of the grunts that got three luckily. One for normal use, another for flight, and another for battling purposes. For the duration of our mission and until the liberation of Pokemon is realized, I was to use them anyway I saw fit. Those were the nature of how I was supposed to be treating them. Easy enough to do.

I took out one Pokeball and threw it, curious to see what I got. It was a Minccino. I've seen picture of it in Pokemon books. It was... strangely fluffy up close. I just stared at it for a long time, neutral about it, strangely. It was a Pokemon, but it was also my tool to use. "You listen here," I started. I could never be rough on it, that would be contradictory to my Lord's vision, but I wasn't babying nothing. "You're going to do exactly as I say from now until the liberation. Understood?"

I got a single nod from it as my answer.

* * *

I was one of the grunts that accompanied Ghetsis to Accumula Town, standing as still as a knight guarding his lord. As I stood, I couldn't help but listen carefully at Ghetsis' speech. His words were deep and riveting, they were so deep that you couldn't help but think on what he preached afterwards. I could see beyond the crowd, they were into it as well. The confusion was evident in their eyes as they processed on what Ghetsis was saying. Yes... even if you didn't agree, and I don't see why you wouldn't, you could feel the truth. And when you feel it, it hits hard, making you doubt what you've previously grown to know, what you were used to. It was so effective, and it's sometimes scary how it would work.

For the period of time that I was standing there, I saw my Lord's long green hair and cap from among the crowd. When us grunts get used to the sight of seeing him, he's hard not to spot. He was looking right at us, right at Ghetsis like the rest of the crowd. He blended pretty well, we all thought. I couldn't help but to take my gaze off of my Lord and throughout the crowd, seeing their eyes so transfixed on Ghetsis among their growing feelings of conflict. Only in the back of the crowd did I see eyes not really affected by Ghetsis' words. There was a boy... two boys actually, one very collected, one hopeful. They weren't too affected at all.

_"They must be new."_I thought to myself.

Before I knew it Ghetsis was done with his speech. Man, it was like time froze for me or something. No... I was foolishly spacing out into the distance... that's all. I got into position, coordinated as we planned so many times before, and marched with my fellow grunts. I could see the crowd clearing up from the corner of my eye, and I could even see my Lord N conversing with those new kids. I didn't see what happened next since I was long gone away from the city. Besides... stretching out my eyes to see that far was painful.

* * *

The Grunts went our separate ways, doing our respective missions as groups. One had to go to the Dreamyard to get a Munna's Dream Mist, Another went ahead to the base in Castelia City, I was in the group where we were stationed near Nacrene City. And even then, there was so much splitting up! Some Grunts actually went ahead of us for some reason. I don't think we ever saw them lately. No, actually scratch that, I know the reason why. It happened when we were heading over to Nacrene in the first place.

"Hold up. Where do you fools think you're going?" I spat, among our discreet travels to the city. With our uniforms, we stick out like a sore thumb, and one of the things that made our Team so successful and undetectable was that we didn't draw too much attention to ourselves when it was unnecessary. Why they wanted to go on ahead and risk our cover being blown, I didn't know. But it was just stupid thinking! "Well? Are you gonna just stand there like an idiot or are you gonna answer me?"

"Back off. I don't need to explain myself to you, stupid girl." One of the grunts spat back at me, going on with his plans. I raised an eyebrow in disgust. How dare he. I sped up my walking pace and stood right in front of him, arms folded with a challenging glare.

"Care to say that to me again? I'll break your face in." I said coolly, obviously not amused.

"Are you deaf? I said it's none of your business, now move!" He started to move again, this time intent on pushing me out of the away. I wasn't having it, I was prepared to gladly put him in his place. Without knowing it, my Pokeball shook and Minccino came out on its own standing in front of me with a battle stance.

I quirked my brow at first, and then stared at it commandingly. "Get back in your Pokeball. This doesn't concern you." I ordered, but Minccino didn't listen to me. Instead, it started to climb on my shoulder, not taking its eyes off the grunt for a second. The other grunt that was walking away with him, stepped forward and started to explain.

"We were going to liberate a Pokemon that a weak Trainer is unworthy to have. A child at that. You know very well that a child cannot use a Pokemon to its full potential. So it is our duty to see that we liberate it."

I started to frown, still keeping my position. "A waste. That is not part of our mission at all. What good is it to even bother with a child?" I stated, wanting to hear more of their answers. I won't lie, it was actually pretty funny how stupid this was.

"Because that's our cause! If a trainer's weak then they don't deserve to have any Pokemon! So we're going to take it! Simple enough for you?" The Grunt in front of me said, looking so smug. I wiped some water off of my face, probably his spit when he was saying that. Gross.

"Stupid is more like it. But whatever, do as you will. But if this put the mission in danger in any way I swear I'm calling you two out."

"I would you like to see you try, girl. Now out of our way." With that, they both left me alone to pursue that little girl and her Pokemon. I rolled my eyes, seeing that it was such a waste of time. Why steal? That wasn't liberating at all. As Ghetsis and the Sages said before, the way for the people to believe in the liberation was to let them believe willingly. Plus, that was draw attention to them! Did they ever think of that thought? Didn't think so.

"Idiots." I muttered under my breath as I went along my hidden path. I noticed that Minccino was still on my shoulder, and I just stared at it blankly. "What are you still doing out here? Get back in your Pokeball." I ordered. It still didn't listen, instead it curled its tail around the back of my head. I was growing annoyed to be honest. "Did you hear what I said?! Get. back. in." I ordered, holding the Pokeball in my hand. Minccino looked at me sadly, like it didn't want to get back in yet. It did climb off of my shoulder and landed on its feet, but it was still looking at me in a sad face.

It made me sick to look at that. No, not out of disgust. Out of guilt. A little bit of guilt. Lord N would reprimand me if he saw me like this. And of course he's the King of Team Plasma, I didn't even want to disappoint the Sages, let alone N. So, with that thought in mind, I heaved a sigh of defeat. "Fine... you can stay out. But when we enter the city, you're going back in your Pokeball." I said.

Minccino's face instantly lit up, then it started to walk beside me as we went on our way to Nacrene City for the mission. I won't lie, I smiled a small smile. Victory was mine today.


	2. Chapter 2

Minccino wasn't the only Pokemon that I had during this excursion. I also have two more Pokemon: a Purrloin and a Ducklett. Ducklett was given to me as my source for flight should I ever be stuck in a situation where the other grunts and Sages wouldn't get to me. But that thing would get crushed on my weight, so I had to make it evolve into a Swanna as soon as I could. That meant that I made it battle a lot. I wouldn't really stop until I could see that Ducklett couldn't move anymore. Usually, I would just stop and sit until it got better. I had plenty of Max Potions and Full Restores with me if need, so there was little need to go to the Pokemon Center. But when I couldn't help it myself, I had to put on a different disguise as a regular trainer and take it to the Pokemon Center. Because really... a Team Plasma member would never be welcomed to a Pokemon Center.

Purrloin was my other battler. Mostly everyone of the lower class of Team Plasma had a Purrloin. I don't know if that was some kind of rule or something, but that was the case. But compared to Ducklett, Purrloin was even weaker. I couldn't really count how many times that Pokemon fainted on me and I had to switch on Ducklett. Unbelievable. But no matter how many times it fainted, it was always eager to battle again.

"Why keep going? You're so weak! Look at you, you can barely stand!" I said one time during a battle. Purrloin only shook its head and stood. Its legs wobbled, but it still wanted to keep going. I grunted in annoyance. "Why keep going? It's a waste." I asked again. Purrloin only growled, ignoring my question. I gave myself a facepalm, Purrloin wasn't going to listen to me. "Fine... run yourself ragged until you can't move. Now go and use Pursuit!" I ordered as Purrloin charged towards a wild Patrat. It lost, of course. I had to carry it back to one of the warehouses in Nacrene. A good amount of them were empty, so some of the Team Plasma grunts stayed here and planned out our mission. In the meantime, I kept all of my Pokemon out so that they could rest more.

Every now and then, I would see all three of them huddle together in a spot away from me. I didn't mind. As long as they were bothering anything, they were fine... But, they all looked so much at peace when they were huddled together. I thought to myself when I was looking at them, "That is what I'm fighting for," forgetting the fact that I was the very one who roughed them to that state in the first place. Of course, at the time I didn't really pay mind to that part when I should have very well did.

Tomorrow is where the mission was supposed to be set. We were to break in the Nacrene Museum while the Gym Leader Lenora is distracted with a Gym Battle, and steal the Dragon Skull that is being held there. Easy enough, so I didn't battle for that entire day, reserving my strength. When I was relaxing, I felt Minccino nuzzle up beside me. I stared at it again, that Pokemon was a strange one. "What are you doing? Go back over there with the others." I said, pointing to Ducklett and Purrloin. Minccino shook its head and started to dust off the dirt from my uniform boots instead. "Ugh... you're a strange one. You won't listen to what I say, yet you nuzzle up on me! What's the deal with you-hey!" I was interrupted as I felt Minccino's tail now trying to tickle my nose. Naturally, I flailed out of control and tried to swat it away. Minccino only laughed at me, or at least it looked like it was laughing.

Geez, it was a good thing the other grunts didn't see this.

I sighed. "You're a strange little Pokemon, you know that? We're too different, you and I." I said, looking away. I only felt Minccino snuggle up on me again, this time falling asleep, seeing as I had enough torture for one day. I shook my head as I adjust my body, trying to feel comfortable with Minccino's head laying against my stomach. Then I felt more heads against me, and I looked down to see Purrloin and Ducklett laying up against me. I took off my hood and ran a hand through my orange hair, just sighing.

"You three are way too strange."

* * *

The mission was... a success? If you could call it that... We were able to break into the museum and steal the Dragon Skull. After that we ran into Pinwheel Forest, and gave the Skull to the Sage Gorm, who was there with us. Little did we expect that we'd be pursued by a kid! Not just any kid too, he was one of the kids I saw back in Accumula Town! I thought he was just a newbie trainer, but he was strong... really strong for a kid! One by one we kept him at bay, and one by one he wiped us all out. It was hard to stall him, if you could call it that. Were we really that weak?

It was my turn, and I boldly stepped in front of the boy's way. "Nice going, but you'll have to go through me now! You won't be so lucky with me, kid!" I bellowed as I challenged him, bringing out Purrloin as my first choice. But... we didn't last very long... How could we? He was so strong... I couldn't understand why a kid like this was so strong. W-Well... he looked about my age... but still! The way he put down Purrloin, then Ducklett, was unreal. Did he even change Pokemon? N-No he didn't... he had an Emboar, a strong one at that, with him that wiped my entire team. Minccino was last, and it put up more of a fight than both Purrloin and Ducklett. But it was useless... that kid decimated me. I remember sinking to the ground in defeat in disbelief. "S-So strong... but how?" I stammered. And then that kid answered me.

"My Pokemon are my friends. We always work together to become strong. And together we'll be even stronger!"

...

Friends?

I scoffed, still feeling defeat. "T-Tch... Whatever... just go, kid." I said, waving my hand in a "shoo" motion. I already lost the battle, I didn't need my pride stomped on too... if you could call that pride. I was among the grunts that got their butt handed to them by a kid! Yeah... I had little to no pride then. I just wanted to go and forget that ever happened. According to Gorm, we didn't need the Dragon Skull anymore, since we got what we needed. So, that left me with a new mission of my own. To Nimbasa City I go.

As I headed past Castelia City and towards Nimbasa, the battle kept replaying in my mind. Well... more like what he said about his Pokemon. Friends... we're too different to be friends with Pokemon, they were higher beings than us... and as such we should free them from our oppression... we're too different to be "friends..." People only say that just because they have them under their control! That was it... and it was only duty to liberate them. Our duty is to our King's vision!

Minccino started to rub my leg with its tail, which made me trip up and lose balance. I could hear it laughing at me. "YOU!" I cried and I scooped up Minccino and held it up at my eye level. "You think you're so cute, huh?" I growled at it, which made Minccino tickle me under my chin. I flinched as I dropped my arms and covered my chin. Minccino landed on its feet and then climbed up on my shoulder. I eyed Minccino for a moment until I felt something rubbing my leg again. Okay, Minccino's tail wasn't that long...

"Agh! Stop that, Purrloin!" I cried as Purrloin snickered at me, still rubbing against my leg. Minccino then tickled my back with its tail, making me trip even more. "Agh! That's it! I'm gonna annihilate you two!" I screamed as I tried to grab both of them, but they all laughed and jumped off me when I spun around enough times, making me dizzy. I kept spinning in a dazed like state, then I felt water being pressed on me and I fell backwards. Okay... I knew THAT one was from Ducklett.

All three of them were laughing at me now, and here I was, in the middle of the route, dripping wet. With a huff, I went and grabbed them all with my free arm, and proceeded to noogie all three of them in the moment. "Who's so tough now, huh?! Who's won this round now, ya sneaky little buggers?" I said. It didn't matter, they were still laughing at me. After a while, of being serious and annoyed, I couldn't help but laugh myself. I probably look like an idiot here. What if someone saw me? And being so close to the city too! And the other grunts!

"Alright, fun's over. Back in your Pokeballs, all of you." I said, taking out all three Pokeballs and putting all of them in their respected ones. Being so close to Nimbasa after trading that sandy route, I couldn't wait to see buildings.

* * *

I don't know how I ended up with my Lord N so fast. Of course, a few other grunts were with me.

When I arrived in Nimbasa I noticed some of the other grunts running into the amusement park. Now, don't get me wrong, Nimbasa City is the City of all amusement parks! I even heard the Gym Leader here had a freakin' rollercoaster inside her gym! That is so cool in itself! I wonder how fast it can really go? Do you have to battle her to ride it?

Er... I went off subject. Moving on.

Anyways, when I followed the grunts into the park, I saw a familiar head of green heading towards the Ferris Wheel with another familiar head. It was... my King! And that boy was the one from the forest! Oh crap... how long was that boy here? What about anyone else? "Crap... crapcrapcrap, this is not good at all!" I cursed myself. I picked up my pace and noticed the grunts that disappeared into the park. We banded together and headed toward the Ferris Wheel. Just in time too, my Lord N just got off with the boy. Judging from the boy's expression, it looks like my Lord told him who he was.

All of us grunts rushed to the Ferris Wheel when we saw our Lord. We were concerned, what did you expect?

"Go, quickly, and let my battle cover your retreat." I heard him say. And of course, we did as ordered by our King during his battle.

We ran out of the amusement park and was long gone before the boy could even look back. We kept running until we were out of the city, and headed towards the direction of Driftveil City. We only stopped once we were out, since the bridge was up. With no other choice, we stayed hidden and kept a look out for our King. It took a while, but we finally saw him exit the city. The grunts that were in the park were excited and went up to him. I already had my Pokemon out in the open for some fresh air. I would run up to my Lord like the others, but I wanted to keep in eye on those three, just in case they try to pull some pranks on me like they've been doing all this time.

As I got up to go and greet my King, Minccino ran up to me. But something was different about it... it looked really worried about something. I quirked a brow in response. "What is it?" I asked, curious as to why Minccino looked like that. Minccino then ran off in a direction, gesturing me to follow it. I casually walked after it, Minccino wasn't going that far anyway. I then saw Ducklett and Purrloin crowing around something, Minccino following soon after. I picked my pace to join them and my eyes widened a bit.

It was a Solosis. A hurt Solosis at that.

Its eyes were shut as it shuddered, and I could see a few wounds from it... and was that static moving across it's body? It was paralyzed and weak, it probably came from battling some trainer who tried to catch it. Unbelievable. "Poor thing... come on." I bent down to its level and picked it up from the ground. It really felt like I was holding jelly since its surface was so watery looking, so I was careful not to accidentally drop it. "I got some Paralyze Heal and some Cheri Berries in my bag. I was saving it for later, but... I think you need it more right now." I said to it as I walked. Minccino, Purrloin, and Ducklett walked with me as I returned to the place I was sitting in before, where I left my bag full of medical stuff.

As I sat down with Solosis still around my arm, I dug around my bag with my free hand, first picking out a Cheri Berry. Carefully, I picked it up and held it to where I thought Solosis' mouth was. "Okay... try and chew this slowly. It'll help you with your paralysis." It took a while for the berry to get into Solosis' mouth. I was grateful it was a Psychic type and all, since it took the berry with the remaining power it had left. It took a while before the static died down, but Solosis was still weak.

"What's going on?"

I blinked as I turn my head to who was talking to me, and I froze for a second. _"Crap... How could I forget that Lord N was still here?!"_I screamed in my head, but outwardly I was calm. My king was really approachable when it came to us grunts. "A-Ah... my Lord N... this Solosis... I found it paralyzed and thought I could help it." I started, eyes wandering back to the Solosis in my lap. "It's not paralyzed anymore, but... they're still some wounds that needs healing."

"I see then..." he said to me, then turned his attention to Solosis. I noticed that his expression changed slightly, he was more saddened by this. "I'm sorry that this happened to you, Solosis. I will help anyway I can." He reached out his hand and softly petted Solosis' surface. I could hear Solaris softly coo at his touch. Watching both of them, you could see the tenderness between N and Solosis. I practically had to keep my focus on getting that Max Potion so that I wouldn't get distracted by how cute that moment was! I took out a Max Potion from my bag, and held it out for Lord N to see. "Yes, that will help Solosis a lot. Thank you." he said. I sprayed the potion over Solosis, and my Lord and I worked together to heal it up. It took until nightfall to do it, but Solosis looked much better than where I found it.

"Solosis was grateful to you for caring for it." N told me as Solosis fell asleep on my lap. "I'm surprised to hear that this Pokemon likes you,"

Wait... what? "It does?" I asked, looking down at it. It looked so peaceful at it slept

"Yes... and that goes for the Pokemon surrounding you right now. Here, I'm going to talk to one of them to prove it." he said. I froze again as he made his way towards where Minccino was sitting. Crap... after all of the things that I did to Minccino and the others? Pushing them into battle in order to get stronger for the sake of achieving his dream? Ugh... it didn't matter if it was for the cause... my King won't like me for it. And I didn't forget that he spoke Pokemon talk. All three of them could rat me out right now. Crap... Crap... Crap...!

"OK. OK, I got it." he said. My Lord looked straight at me. Oh Arceus, here we go. Let the lecture commence. "Minccino says that 'Lily is a good person deep down. All three of us play with her all the time, and she's easy to pick on."

Why that little...

"'Despite who she hangs around with, she watches out for us.' It seems that this Minccino trusts you for some reason. In fact... all of them do. That's good! That is good news to hear from them."

Wait... what? Did I... hear that correctly? "That... that _is_good to hear." That was all I could say. I didn't know if Minccino was covering for me or what, but... at least I didn't get an earful from my Lord like I feared. I was unaware that a smile was forming on my face.

"Since you're part of the people that would help save the Pokemon, I would say that I'm not too surprised to hear that from them." he said. "But even as we sit here, there are still Pokemon that are suffering. There are still Pokemon that were hurt like that Solosis. That Pokemon told me what happened you know. Solosis was paralyzed by a Trainer's Zebstrika."

So that explains it. Hmph... I knew it.

"What is there to be seen through something as meaningless as a battle? The only thing it proves is that my friends get hurt in the process. Trainers says that it's for understanding each other's Pokemon, but how is that achieved by hurting each other?! I don't understand how that could be, it's such a tolerance that I could never accept. Pokemon are not just tools for people to use, and yet people use them as such!"

I just listened to my lord speak of his cause. His speaking to people privately is just as riveting as if he was talking to a group of people. You could feel it in his words how strongly he feels about it. You could see that he truly cares for Pokemon and their well-being... that's how pure Lord N was. Heh... and then there's me. Thinking about it now, I've been treating Minccino and the others like tools myself. Pushing them to the limits, calling them weak, only caring for their well-being when it's clearly obvious... and I call myself a soldier of liberation? What a joke... with all of my talk, I never deliver.

"It's a shame, really... If Pokemon and People cared about one another like those two and their Pokemon... and even you and Minccino, then the liberation wouldn't even be needed." I heard N say. Oh my Lord you know so little about me... "But that doesn't matter... I will make the liberation happen. My conviction is strong, and I'll be a hero."

I was unsure of what to say after he talks about his vision. Sometimes they're so deep that I could cry, and sometimes he talks so fast I can barely keep up with what he's saying. But either way, I would always feel it. There was a silence, a small silence between us. And then I finally broke the ice. "Lord N, did you enjoy the Ferris Wheel today?" I asked.

This always happens between my Lord and the Grunts. I'm no exception. Out of all of the higher-ups in Team Plasma, it was only our Lord that always spoke with us outside of mission briefings. In fact, he rarely spoke to us about them at all. We've talked about the amusement park for a short while before he went on his way. I told him that Solosis was going to be fine at this rate, and that I'll let it go in the morning.

Perhaps... I'll do the same for the others as well.

* * *

The minute that we heard that the bridge had went down, the grunts that were with me immediately took their leave. Minccino and the others were still fast asleep when I heard about the bridge. I figured this was the perfect time to set them free. I picked up Solosis without waking it up, and set it at the place I just sat in, where Minccino, Purrloin, and Ducklett were crowded around in slumber. They all looked... peaceful like that... I wonder how did it look with me sleeping there...?

_"No. Can't think about that. I'm doing the right thing."_I thought to myself. Yes... I was liberating the Pokemon that aided me in my mission. That had to set a good example for others. Why preach about liberation when you can't even liberate your own Pokemon? That's what I came to realize. I'm sure they won't miss after all I've put them through not too long ago. And so, I went on my way to my next mission.

There were grunts that were captured by the Driftveil Gym Leader, but escaped when the bridge was brought down according to the report sent to me. So I had to be careful when crossing towards Driftveil and into Chargestone Cave, my next station point, in fear of getting caught. The bright side of this was that at least I had company in the two grunts I was with. Unlike the group I was in while at Nacrene City, we barely even spoke to each other, so the trip went rather quickly. While sneaking into the city, we took our time hiding behind cargo and away from the gym. We hung around the Cold Storage, and when the coast was clear, we went to our respected destination.

The grunts went around and snuck around the city in their uniforms. Me? I figured I could at least take off my upper top and just walk with no problem.

...

Shut up. I always have a black shirt under my uniform.

I walked briskly with my hood in my arms, making sure that the team's emblem wasn't seen to any unwanted eyes. People that saw me just assumed that I was doing laundry or something. But... god, do you know how heavy this part of my uniform is? Some of the parts were inspired by some sort of armor, so yeah... it's sort of heavy. I'd say about... fifteen pounds in each shoulder pad? It gets heavy after a while where you carry it in your arms. When people walked up to me noticing this heaviness, I had to make up some stories quick, or reject them short and sweet.

"Is that your laundry?"

"Yeah... that time of the week again."

"That looks like a heavy load... Mind if I help?"

"Oh nonononono. I got it."

"You sure?"

"Oh yeah. Thanks though." And I would hurry on my way and repeat this process until I got out of the city.

As soon as I got out of the city, I put the upper part of my uniform back on as I walked towards Chargestone Cave. Looking around the scenery, the Pokemon that were at peace here, I felt happy. I really did. Seeing Pokemon at peace like that made me feel more at ease as I thought about my mission. And while thinking about that fact, my thoughts briefly wandered to Minccino and the others. How were they doing? Were they adjusting to the wild life again? How was Solosis? Did Purrloin get into another battle by itself? Was Ducklett flying over the bridge?

I shook my head. "F-Forget about them. They're free... they're happy. They're where they belong." I told myself, rubbing my hand against my brow. They've been liberated, and I could get some other Pokemon to help me, and then let them go as soon as it's done. It wasn't that hard... why didn't I do that with Minccino and the others before? It wasn't that hard to free them... it wasn't that hard...

So then why do I feel this crappy?


	3. Chapter 3

In Chargestone Cave... there were many electric currents floating around in the air. My hair was probably going to poof inside my cap thanks to all of this static. But hey, maybe that'll set me apart from the other grunts physically. But back to why I was in here with the other grunts, Ghetsis himself has mentioned that we'll be "testing" someone soon. Though... if we're testing someone, then why are we letting a Galvantula Web block the way?

"It's to keep the unwanted trainers out. The one we are waiting for will take care of this in no time." One of the grunts told me.

Well... that explained things _nicely_.

To get down into my position, I went into the lower levels of the cave. I saw more grunts down here... so this is where we're testing this special "trainer." I thought... but... I had no Pokemon with me right now... I set all of them free not too long ago. But, this would be a probably easily solved... I just had to befriend one of the Pokemon here in this cave. So while the trainer keeps us waiting, I'll be here looking around for new Pokemon.

I started looking around from what seemed like hours on end. The Pokemon I encountered were either Drilbur or Boldore. And while a Drilbur would be promising, I was left defenseless and running for my life since I couldn't defend myself well against it. The most I could do was throw rocks at it. It was a sorry sorry sight to see. Some of the grunts that saw my "attempts" laughed at me, which was humiliating. Are trainers really this defenseless against Pokemon without some of their own? Oh god...

With more futile attempts in my end, I finally stopped when it wasn't getting funny anymore. Of course, it was apparently freaking _hilarious_to the grunts watching me fail miserably. Just great.

"Hahaha! You're an idiot if you think you can get a Pokemon without having any Pokemon to begin with!"

"Did she give hers away or something? What a dope!"

"She's probably a weak trainer anyway! Haha, why is she even here?!"

Ingrates.

I sank down into the walls of the cave in frustration and humiliation. Why was they laughing at me for doing for we stood for? What we were fighting for in the first place... I gave up Minccino... I freed Minccino and the others into the wild because I wasn't supposed to just keep them in my chain forever. They were Pokemon, and they were supposed to be free into the wild. I'm sure that my Lord would agree with what I did. And besides... I treated them like crap in the beginning. Thinking back again... in terms of training them I became the one thing that I was fighting against: Ungrateful Trainers that treat Pokemon poorly. And I say that I fight for the liberation of Pokemon? What a joke. Congratulations Lily, you are a hypocrite.

I was mad at myself, realizing this... and now that Minccino and the others were gone... Dare I say it? I felt pretty lonely, I missed Purrloin and its determination, I missed Ducklett following everyone around... I missed Minccino trying to show me up and disobeying me... and heck, I missed all of them trying to pick on me. Let's be honest... us grunts aren't exactly as close as we want to believe. The only thing we have in common is the way we look. We're not really buddy buddy, most of us greet each other with either status reports or snarky remarks, snarky remarks in my case definitely. What a miserable reality.

I looked down at the ground, and noticed a yellow fuzzball near my foot. I raised an eyebrow as I peered at it. "Someone left a blond toupee here..." I said. I didn't feel like picking up random pieces of hair, so I just moved it aside with my foot, and then I saw it grow legs and scurry away from my foot. I jumped up and had my back against the wall. "HOLY ARCEUS LIVING TOUPEES!" I shrieked. Then I quickly covered my mouth when I realized I shrieked so loud. "Smooth move, you want the entire team here to hear you?!" I cursed myself. But back to that moving hair piece! I stared at it for a while, and then little blue eyes popped up.

It was a Joltik!

I sank down to the ground again, heaving a sigh of relief. "Geez, you scared me! I thought I was going to get ambushed by moving hair!" I said, relaxing a bit. I forgot that Joltiks were pretty common in this area, so I thought it was a perfect opportunity. So I just looked at it while it was making sounds at me. "I wish I can understand what you're saying..." I sighed. Where was Lord N when you needed him? "I can't battle you so... wanna stick around with me? It'll be less lonely for the both of us."

Now, I don't know if this was Joltik's way of acceptance, but I watched it crawl on the wall I was laying on and plopped down on my hood. The static it gave off thanks to this cave made my hair spike out through my hood. "I'm guessing that's a yes..."

* * *

I fixed up my hair and put the hood over my head as I wandered around the cave, Joltik following me along the way. I heard that the trainer we were supposed to be testing has entered the cave. A few more people came in too, but they weren't as important as the trainer we were testing apparently. It didn't make much of a difference to me, I just needed to get back to the spot I was supposed to be in. Joltik was close behind me, staring at the back of my head as it walked. I looked back at it. Somehow it still looked like a moving piece of hair to me... but it was still cute.

I looked ahead of my path and saw a Boldore blocking me. Clinking my tongue in annoyance, I stopped to look for another way. "Che... I don't feel like fighting a Boldore. I need to reserve my strength for that trainer I'm supposed to test." I muttered to myself. I jerked my head towards a direction at Joltik, gesturing to came with me on another path. Before I knew it, another Boldore came up around the corner. "Okay... then I'll just go this way." I said, turning on my heel towards another path. I was able to walk for a while, before bumping into another Boldore. On top of that, the two Boldores that I left were behind me now.

Crap.

I stared at the Boldore in front of me, then looked back at the two Boldores that were gaining on me. I looked down at Joltik, who stood still staring at the two Boldores behind us. I started to snicker to myself... then it changed into a chuckle... and finally it changed into full-blown laughter. Was this funny? Not really... but, I felt this urge to just laugh. "I'm never going to get a break, am I?" I said to myself, my expression turning into a grimace. "We're outnumbered three to one, Joltik... We've just met and all, but... I want you to follow my lead. Got it?" I said. Joltik did a motion from what I assumed was a nod. I nodded myself, and looked at the Boldore in front of me.

Time for Action!

I charged forward and jumped over the Boldore in front of me. "Joltik! Use Electroweb!" I cried out as soon as I landed on my feet. From the shadows, I saw a bright light of electricity. From the corner of my eye, I saw Joltik moving against the walls. "Let's roll!" With that, Joltik and I started running down the cave. Even though I didn't like it... I needed help from my fellow grunts. Joltik's here, but it can't take on three Boldores all my itself. So we keep running, keeping an eye out for any of the grunts.

The Boldores gained on us a few times, and I had Joltik use Electroweb a few times to slow them down. But that didn't stop them from gaining on us though. If they tried to pin us down, I would either slide under one or jump over one, and Joltik would crawl along the walls, Joltik's attacks didn't do too much damage since there was a major type disadvantage. But we just had to keep running. After running so much, both Joltik and I ran out of breath, and we could barely run anymore. "Crap... After... all of that running... we still didn't find anyone?!"

I looked up and saw a fellow grunt ahead of me. Way ahead of me. Still panting heavily, I started to walk along the walls and yell out. "Hey! Can you help me out here? Hey!" I yelled, but it sounded hoarse from all the panting. Besides, he looked like he didn't hear me. So I yelled louder as I walked. "Hey! There's like, a gang of Boldore after me! I don't have much firepower! Come on, I'm out of breath from running here! Help me!"

The grunt started to hear me, I could see him turn his head in my direction. He was coming in my direction! Yes! Finally some help! Then... I could see his eyes going wide, and stopping in his tracks. I was confused about he did this, but I kept moving towards him in desperation. I reached out my hand to him for help but... instead of taking it, he ran away at the sight of the three Boldores behind us. "Wait! Where are you going?! Don't leave me here!" I cried out after him. I attempted to run after him, but I was already exhausted. I couldn't run anymore. I sank to the ground in exhaustion and utter defeat. Joltik started to crawl to me, and I heaved a tired laugh as I covered my eyes with my hand.

"Ha... Haha... So, this is how it goes, huh? Being abandoned by my cowardly fellow grunt, being at the end of my rope with little strength... how _perfect_. This is what I get from my earlier treatment of Pokemon, huh?" I laughed, but it really sounded like I was crying or something. Yes, this was karma at its' finest. "Hey... Joltik... at least you could get away, right? You live here so... get out while you can." I brought my legs up to my chest as I stared right at the group of Boldores, still crying/laughing as I looked. "Come on... you've been chasing me all this time... I'm not going anywhere this time so... Bring it on!"

As I said that, I saw an attack blow across between the Boldores and myself. And it wasn't from Joltik either...

...Swift? Who uses Swift here? I looked around, hoping that it was another grunt that saw me. Instead, I found someone I didn't expect to see.

"M-Minccino?!"

I knew very well that this was the Minccino I was with all this time. I could pick out that glint in its eye anywhere. It stood in front of me with a defiant look. Was it... defending me? "M-Minccino! What was you doing here? You were supposed to be free! Back to the wild, remember? Don't tell me you've been-" I started, but then I saw one of the Boldores do Power Gem and send it straight at us.

The Power Gems were countered by a Water Pulse. Then, a shadow-like claw rose from the shadows and attacked the Boldores in front.

"Ducklett...? Purrloin?"

There stood my Pokemon in front of me... protecting me. I sat there dumbfounded... I thought that they would be happy being free. Isn't that what they would want? To be free from human oppression? Especially from people like me? With how I treated them before, I'm surprised that they even followed me here, much less rescue me...

Minccino, Ducklett, and Purrloin... they were all raring to go... I slowly stood up from the ground, ready to face these Boldores that have been giving me grief. Time to do this the right way!

"Purrloin, Hone Claws! Ducklett, cover Purrloin with Water Pulse! Minccino, use Sing on the Boldore in front!"

As Purrloin began to hone its claws, Ducklett stepped forward and unleashed its Water Pulse on the Boldores. In Ducklett's wake, Minccino stepped forward now, opening its mouth to use Sing on the target. The attack looked like to be a success! The front Boldore was asleep. But that didn't leave the other two Boldore out. One attacked with Power Gem and the other with a Smack Down move. Minccino got hit with Power Gem and Ducklett got knocked down by Smack Down. I winced a bit. Rock-type attack weren't good for Ducklett. Alright then... time for Round 2!

"Let's go, Purrloin! Shadow Claw at the back! Ducklett, aim and use Bubblebeam on the other back Boldore! Minccino! Let's wake up our sleeping guest with a Wake-Up Slap! Go!"

Purrloin and Minccino dashed forward together with Purrloin right behind them. Once they were close enough, they split apart to attack their respected targets. Minccino gave out a hard Wake-Up Slap to the sleeping Boldore with its tail, making some very nice damage to it. Purrloin in the meanwhile formed a huge Shadow Claw as it lunged at the Boldore it was aiming for. It didn't completely knock it out it out, but it did stagger. Ducklett had better luck, the Bubblebeam it shot out knocked out its Boldore, since it was already effected greatly by Water Pulse.

"Alright! Two more!" I shouted. The Boldore were apparently not pleased with this... but oh well! We had them on the ropes! All we needed was one or two more hits. One of the Boldores seemed to turn into Iron for a moment, and the other aimed another Power Gem at Purrloin's direction. Purrloin was hit, but it managed to get back on its feet. I clicked my tongue, not forgetting that Joltik was next to me. "Iron Defense, huh... crap, didn't expect that. But oh well... this just means that the battle will be even longer. We need to take them out and regroup. Fast. Now... if only we have more firepower..."

While I was chatting away to myself, Minccino and Purrloin nodded at each other, as if going along with a place that they hatched behind my back. Before I could give any more commands, both of them charged forward again. My mouth went agape. In a situation like this, they chose now to not wait for any orders?! That was just... just! Agh! Words couldn't describe what I thought since I couldn't think of the word, but unlike all the other times I yelled at them for not waiting for my commands, something in me stopped. _"Wait a minute... let's trust in them for a change. Let's see what they're gonna do."_I thought to myself.

I sat there keeping my eyes glued to those three, as if sitting at the edge of my seat in a movie. Minccino took a deep breath and use its Echoed Voice. Instead of aiming at the Boldore, Minccino aimed near the ceiling. I didn't know why it did that though. "Uh... Minccino? We don't want a cave in here!" I cried, being wary of the ceiling and making sure there were no rocks falling down on my head. But I saw shortly that Minccino's Echoed Voice was a "signal," because shortly the Boldores were flinching from an attack from behind.

Psyshock.

I couldn't believe this was happening when I saw it. "Y-You're that Solosis! Why you? I didn't even-" I started, but the rapid growls and sounds from the Pokemon drowned my words completely, and the next thing I knew, Purrloin was swinging at another Shadow Claw at a weakened Boldore, and knocked it out. Ducklett flew over to finish things, unleashing a Water Pulse on the remaining Boldore. All of them... fainted at the middle of the path, and Joltik and I spent our time watching this unfold.

"You all did it... and you all came back..." I said, practically breathless at this point. Minccino and Purrloin turned there heads to look at me, and suddenly a white light encased Purrloin as it changed form. "Y-You gotta be kidding me! Purrloin's evolving!?" I cried. Okay, if I was going to have one more surprise today, I think I'm gonna fall over dead. But back to Purrloin... no, I should say Liepard. My Purrloin evolved into a Liepard after catching up to where I was.

And after that, they gave me the biggest group hug that I've ever had.

All of this cuddling beside my sides, rubbing against my uniform, climbing on my shoulders and head... I wasn't used to this. "After all I did to you guys, you came all the way here to follow me? You chose being with me instead of being free and happy in the wild... All of you are so weird..." I said, but I choked because I felt like crying. There was a lump in my throat and everything! All that was missing was the tears. Well, I guess being misty-eyed would have to count.

In Team Plasma, we fought for the liberation of Pokemon by getting trainers to set theirs free in the wild where they belonged, a world to themselves. Some of us even acted like humans and Pokemon weren't supposed to be together since we bring nothing but conflict to them because we're so different. But... if anyone saw us right then, at that moment... it was the most fulling feeling in the world. At that moment, I didn't care if this went against the organization's beliefs... or even my Lord's beliefs... This felt so right, and it felt like it made sense.

* * *

I was surprised enough from Minccino and the others coming back to me, that I forgot all about the test that was team was giving some trainer. Guess who it was? That kid. Yeah... I saw him while I was resting with my team, I didn't feel like battling after all that's happened... heck, I wasn't even where I was supposed to be for the test, so I just waved my hand in a shooing motion, to tell him to go on and leave me. Strangely... he was looking at me weird... or at least I took it as weird.

"What are you looking at? I told you I wasn't going to battle." I said, but he just looked at me with those eyes filled with hope. The kind that I wasn't able to understand.

"That's pretty cool of you, you know. You're changing a lot!" he said.

What? "Pfft... yeah right, the static's gotten into your brain, kid. How do you even know that?"

"I dunno. Maybe it's just that look in your eye. It got a little softer that the last time I saw you."

"We're a lower class group of trainers that look like we're clones. How can you possibly distinguish me from the others?"

"I dunno. Probably because you're changing faster than the others. Everyone's here capable of that, you know? But you don't seem as cruel as the others, I can tell."

I just slumped and rested my head on Liepard's back. I have got to stop slumping around. "...Just go, kid... before I change my mind about battling you." I said finally. The battling part I didn't really mean, we were all so tired. I never thought that I would be so happy to see that kid go on about his business... Probably to battle more of the grunts and probably my Lord... who I found out later was near the exit. But my mind wasn't on my fellow grunts or my Lord N... it was on something else.

"I'm changing, huh?"

Well... I guess that was sort of true... After Minccino and the others came all this way here to just be with me, I decided not to leave them this time. Solosis and Joltik wanted to come along as well, so I got out the Pokeballs I had left and caught them. I hesitated a bit at first, because of that little voice that reminded me of Team Plasma's vision and goal... and myself being such a hypocrite for keeping my Pokemon in my Pokeballs. But I didn't much care for that anymore... come to think of it, I doubt anyone in this organization knows what we're doing except the higher-ups... wait a minute... maybe that's saying a bit much... hnn...

The grunts in the cave were already moving out after that boy left, so I left after them into Mistralton City. As if I didn't question my beliefs before... when I went through with the grunts I caught up with, I saw something that I didn't expect from a few people: Fear. Sure, I would've expected confusion from our uniforms or something, but since we were the ones that will bring about the liberation, I thought that we would get more of a welcome... but instead I see fear. Why is that...? Was it because how grand our numbers are? Was it because they were scared of our example (excluding me) to free our Pokemon? Was that it? No... it wasn't even that... I started to hear whispers from some of the townspeople. A conversation to be exact. I stopped for a moment to listen in.

"Hey, look there... Isn't that Team Plasma?"

"Those guys that keep preaching about liberation? Yeah, that's them."

"Some liberators. A friend of mine got his Pokemon stolen from them. Poor guy's been broken up for days."

"Seriously?! Ugh, that's so terrible! And they think they're saving Pokemon?! Who would believe that?"

"Don't ask me. Some trainers gave up their Pokemon because of what they said."

"Ugh... if that's the case, why isn't anyone stopping them?"

"You didn't hear this from me, but I've heard that even the Gym Leaders..."

...

So... that's what we are? Were we stealing Pokemon...? Really? If so, then... what were we doing all this time? Do the Sages know about this? Heck, does Lord N know about this? I doubt it... then he would've gave the order to stop cold turkey. But then... was this still happening? Was the whole liberation mission just an act? While people were taking this seriously, were others using the missions to steal Pokemon for themselves? _"You're thinking too much... calm down for a minute..."_ I said to myself under myself as I started walking. I didn't actually see this happen did I?

...wait. Those two back at Nacrene. I did see something like that! ...okay, not see it in person, but they mentioned it to my face and I brush it off like it was some stupid thing! Agh... why didn't I stop them? So many things were running inside my mind. I had so many questions now... but the one thing that stuck out in my mind was the most obvious.

_What am I even doing?_


	4. Chapter 4

"My dear, how long are you going to stay here? Surely you and your Pokemon are well rested enough."

That voice that was talking to me was an old lady that lived with her children (who are practically adults) down on Route 7. When the team dispersed back in Mistralton City about a week ago, I did some soul searching on my own. I had no orders from the higher-ups, so I was free to do as I pleased. I decided, for just a few days, to just live like a Pokemon Trainer would. I wanted to see... how the people we were trying to convince that liberation is the way lived. With so much running through my mind, I just wanted to see. I casted away my Plasma uniform, wearing just all black underneath, and just went out into the wild with my Pokemon. I did try and catch a few Pokemon, but I wasn't so lucky. On the bright side, with how much battling and resting I did, Solosis and Ducklett evolved into a Duosion and a Swanna (in separate times of course).

There was this one time when I entered the Pokemon Center in Mistralton City. I wasn't wearing my uniform, so I looked just as normal as the trainers around me. I decided to go to the Pokemon Center for once and get my Pokemon checked out. With all of what we've been through, I should've done this ages ago. Luckily, the nurse was kind to me and my Pokemon,and the service was free. That was even more of a bonus. Compared to the looks I received when I was in my Plasma outfit (which were looks of fear mixed in with some dirty looks or something), it was kind along with neutral. To them, I was just another "trainer." But even that didn't get me... it was their Pokemon.

They looked so... happy.

They looked as happy as Minccino and the others when they found me in Chargestone Cave. Very happy in fact... I don't really get it... that is what we're fighting against? All this time we've been preaching... Ghetsis' memorizing speeches... Lord N's honorable beliefs... could they have been wrong all of this time? It all looks so clear... so why does it feel confusing to me?

"Miss, your Pokemon are now in full health."

Oh... I almost forgot I was in a Pokemon Center. "Thank you." I said, gathering my Pokeballs and going on my way. I walked for a while when I got out of the city and the sky was looking pretty cloudy. "It might rain soon... but I want to visit somewhere first." I said to myself as I walked. Minccino released itself from its Pokeball and hopped on my shoulder. I was pretty much used to it doing things like that by now. I petted Minccino's head and said. "We're going to the Celestial Tower before it rains... you might not like it." Minccino just shrugged as a response. It can handle it. "Okay... Don't say I didn't warn you." I said in a sing-song voice. I thought that would help lighten the mood.

Celestial Tower was the resting place of all Pokemon in this part of the world. I wanted to come here because... I wanted to see another side of trainers we grunts either don't usually see or are too blind to see it. Minccino already looked sad the minute we walked through the door. "I told you." I said, patting its head again. I walked up the stairs and started looking around, trainers weeping and praying in front of the Pokemon graves. I never had any Pokemon die on me, but I'll be crossed if I didn't feel their sadness. People are capable of having such emotions when it comes to Pokemon, and vice versa.

A Litwick was following me when I got higher and higher into the tower. It wasn't really that hard to notice, and it seemed like it wasn't going to leave me alone anytime soon. Well, guess it's time to really feel like a trainer. "Let's go, Liepard! Use Assurance!" As Liepard came out of its Pokeball, it went and use Assurance on the Litwick. The Litwick fumbled a bit before getting back on balance, using Flame Burst on Liepard. Liepard got blown back, but still remained on its' feet. But it flinched as it did so. "Crap... Liepard's been burned! It must be this Litwick's ability... But at place like this...?" Such fire power! I gotta try and catch it! "Okay Liepard... Shadow Claw!" Liepard got back into position as best as it could, and lunged with a Shadow Claw on Litwick. Litwick countered with the move Hex. If Liepard wasn't a Dark type, things could've been much worse, since it was already burned. I narrowed my eyes, Liepard might be hurt, but Litwick's had two huge hits against it! I had to catch it now.

Taking out a Pokeball from my bag, I gripped it and threw it. "Go, Pokeball!" I yelled as it hit the Litwick. One... Two... Three... Ding! Caught a Litwick!

I picked up the Pokeball with my new Litwick, then tended to Liepard with a Burn Heal. "Sorry about that... you okay?" I asked, and Liepard answered with a nod. "It'll probably be a while before we get back down, so hang on for a minute." I said. After applying the Super Potion on Liepard's wounds, I returned it to its Pokeball. Minccino looked at me, kinda worried for Liepard's sake. "Don't worry, we'll get down soon enough. We just gotta be careful not to run into anymore Litwick's while in here."

Easier said than done.

Litwicks were on our tail every second! I practically had to run all over the tower! Some of the trainers that were mourning or training were looking at me weird, but I didn't really care at the moment. I just wanted to go to one place in the tower before I went back down. The top, where the bell was.

When we reached the top, we weren't being followed by a herd of Litwicks. That was good for me, it looked like the candles from a long dining room table were following me all around this tower. The top of the tower was really high, with clouds looking like it's surrounding it while there were more above my head. At the far end across where I was standing stood a bell. That's what I wanted to see. I wanted to ease the spirits of the towers by ringing this bell. Maybe that will put my raging mind at ease. I walked over and rung the bell, letting it toll a few times. As it tolled, I prayed... that's what I should do in times like this, right? Right. No wonder everyone wants to ring the bell... its' sound was so peaceful to me.

After the bell's sound died down, I took out my Pokeball to release Swanna. It ruffled its feathers as it looked around our surroundings, Realizing that we were very high up. Flying as the original reason I was given Swanna in the first pace, but I never really tried out flying since it evolved. "Swanna, let's try flying down from here. " I said. Swanna looked at me like I was crazy. Well... I probably was in the first place, but that's not the point! "Come on, I'm being serious here! Lower your neck so that I can get on." I said. Swanna still looked at me like I was out of my mind, but it lowered its neck regardless. I carefully got on it and wrapped my arms around my neck. Even Minccino was looking at me weird. But I didn't care, I wanted to try this. "Okay, let's go!" I said.

...It was a disaster.

I screamed at the top of my lungs like a maniac going down. "AHHH! MOTHER OF ARCEUS I'M GONNA FALL! I'M GONNA FALL AND GO SPLAT! I'M GONNA DIE I'M SO GONNA DIE! OH HOLY ARCEUS LET ME LIIIIIIVE! I WANT DOWN AND I WANT TO LIIIIIIIVE!" I screamed so much that my eyes were shut tight. I didn't see where I was going, I had to put my complete trust in Swanna to get us down safely. And Minccino was laughing at me, as usual. "QUIT LAUGHING MINCCINO! DON'T TELL YOU'RE NOT SCARED OF THIS?! OH SWEET ARCEUS I WANT TO GO DOWN SOMEBODY LET ME DOWN SWANNA I'M TRUSTING YOUUUU!"

Swanna landed in a spot somewhere on Route 7. Judging from the water now hitting my back, I could tell it was raining. I was still screaming like a madman though. I need more practice when it came to flying. Apparently someone heard my screams, or else I wouldn't have seen people rushing towards me and my Pokemon. Those people were a couple with the old lady I mentioned earlier. They took me into their cabin and let me dry off there from the rain, and they also let my Pokemon rest. From my soaked clothes, they gave me a change of clothes to wear for the moment. They were really nice to me... especially the old lady. They asked where I was from, and I told them my hometown, which was Lacunosa Town.

Strange... up until now I never thought of my background to be important since I was a grunt. I didn't think of myself as very important throughout this mission of ours, My hometown, my preferences, even my name... none of those thing were important when I was out there being a faithful grunt. The others felt the same way I did in terms of that. We were fully committed to the role given to us. We were only underlings. But out of my uniform, I felt strangely open to these guys, so I was this close to blurting out everything. Thank Arceus I didn't. I think they would've kicked me out in the rain and kept my Pokemon.

But I had a feeling that the old lady knew when she was going through my wet things. If she really did know, she didn't mention it. I ended up staying there for about a day, until the old lady asked me if I was going to leave since my clothes were dry and my Pokemon were healed.

"I'll probably leave soon... but to be honest, Granny. I don't even know what I believe in anymore. I know that doesn't really make any sense, but my head's spinning faster than a Pokemon using Gyro Ball."

"Every trainer tries to find his or her way in their adventure, and they always find their way. The same can apply to beliefs too. You'll find you way soon enough, child. And when you find it, you'll know what to do."

When she finished saying that, something beeped in my bag... and I recognized that beep anywhere... it was time for a new mission. I gathered my things and my Pokeballs, then brought back Swanna to try and practice flying again. I slipped on my grunt uniform, leaving the hood out for a moment. Swanna still looked at me like I was crazy for trying this out again, but I was in a rush. It lowered its neck and I wrapped my arms around it carefully. "Thank you, Granny... for letting me stay the night." was all I could stay. Hopefully her words would stay with me. "Let's go, Swanna!" And then we took off into the sky.

At least I didn't scream as much this time.

* * *

Dragonspiral Tower was the place I was sent into next, according to the message that I got. What we came for in order for my Lord N to befriend the Legendary Pokemon was achieved, and that we had to guard the way so that N's meeting wouldn't be interrupted by unwanted visitors. Hmm... I wonder if I would see that kid again then? He seems to appears every time Team Plasma appears for some reason. Sort of like a storyline or something where he _has_ to be in the way. It's a weird feeling.

I flew with Swanna on the way over... I was still freaking out a little... but at least I wasn't heading down at such a high speed. All I had to do was not look down so much... yeah, that's easy to say when your eyes are closed shut at some moments. But the view was unbelievable from up in the sky. I should practice flying with Swanna more often.

It was a while before stopping near Icirrus City and in front of the tower. It looked like I came right on time to see the entrance being pryed open.

Lord N was already way ahead from the rest of us. The Sages thought that it would be a good idea to clear the path for N to get to the top without any interference from the wild Pokemon, but he would have none of it. Pokemon were his friends through and through, and if he would meet the legendary Pokemon at the top of this tower knowing that he had people hurt his friends just to get through, he would never forgive us or himself. Particularly himself. The Sages had no choice but to let him go on his own, to befriend the Legendary Pokemon and be recognized as the hero.

But... apparently that didn't apply to us, seeing as how some of the grunts would just take some of the Pokemon as they pleased, and some just stood there still not knowing what to do. The minute we got word of someone approaching the tower - and guess who it was? That kid again! - everyone stopped cold turkey and went into defensive mode. Because this kid has been popping us meddling with our affairs, the Sages - not including Ghetsis apparently - now took to him as a threat, and therefore must stop or at least stall him from getting to Lord N. He wasn't alone either, another kid and the gym leader were entering too.

I was with a few other grunts in one floor, near the top I think. I remember it was a long way down from where the party was. The higher we got, the louder you could tell where a battle is going down. From our height, you could probably tell from the floor below near the stairs, which was a long way down in itself. I wasn't really too keen on battling this kid again. I was already confused enough as to what I'm even doing, I didn't need to be pounded into the ground by a kid in the process. That would be like rubbing salt on a wound!

"Can you feel it? We're so close to our new world!" I heard a grunt next to me say. She had a Patrat with her beside her foot. Of course, I couldn't let anyone on the team figure out that I was having second thoughts! Play it cool, Lily...

"Y-Yeah... after all that work we did to achiever that goal, I can just smell it." I responded. Wow, you sure didn't sound that confident there, Lily.

"That's why we won't let anyone stop our Lord N! Let's crush that trainer who opposes us! And then, our dream will be achieved!" Another grunt next to me spoke up. He had a Sandile on him. A lot of the other grunts I noticed had either a Patrat, a Sandile, a Purrloin, or the evolutionary forms of those three Pokemon.

...am I the only one with at least some kind of variety?!

From the top of the tower, we all suddenly heard a "Burn Baby Burn!" from the top of the tower.

"...what the?"

If that was my Lord N, then he probably got too excited up there.

But back to point... from the tones of their voices, at least from these two... they seemed to believe that they were doing the right thing. We were doing the right thing. Sure... there were some idiots that abuse and steal Pokemon, but there were also grunts that believed were doing the right thing. I was the same way... before all of this doubt in my mind, and even when my methods were rough and probably inexcusable, I truly believed that I was doing the right thing in taking part of the liberation. I believed that Pokemon deserved better, so much better than the mistreatment that they were getting. I believed that Pokemon were our friends.

Heh... well I had a funny way of showing that belief, didn't I? I guess holding tight to what you're fighting for can cause you to do some ridiculous and hypocritical things if you weren't careful. But... that still doesn't make it okay, no matter how good your intentions were.

I spaced out for a while, because the next thing I knew I was seeing that kid running towards the stairs in my direction. Smooth Lily. Smooth. I shook my head vigorously, watching as the grunts I was with earlier get thrashed by this kid's Pokemon. Why was he so strong? Was it because he trained? Was it because he remained true to his beliefs? Was it because he was, in all retrospect, Lord N's rival? Was it because of his bond his Pokemon?

...I'm thinking too much again.

It was finally my turn to face him, and that kid still had a lot of momentum left. How does he still have a lot of that? Nevertheless, no matter how confused I was, I had my role to play in this. "Long time no see, kid. We meet like this a lot, huh? But... forget about that for now. You know the drill. You and I battle, you beat me, I let you go to my Lord, and he's already befriend the Legendary Pokemon. And so on, and so on. So let's just hurry up and get through this, ok? I already have enough on my mind."

"You don't know that. Why are you doing this anyway? You could quit Team Plasma and come with us, you know?" he said.

"...it's not that simple, kid. Nothing is." I said.

"It can be. After I'll talk some sense into N, I'll talk some sense into you too! I bet some of the others here care about Pokemon too, so... for their sake and for everyone's sake, I'll stop Team Plasma's plans! I'll give my all into this!"

...such conviction. "That's some pretty big talk, kid. Alright then... show me. Let me see this resolve that makes you so strong!"

I got thrashed, of course. But... at least with my team, I was able to push him a little bit. That was better than some of the other grunts, right? Litwick and Joltik put up a fight even though they were new to my team. Duosion and Liepard were hardhitters. And Minccino and Swanna were speedy too. Even though I got royally thrashed, at least I put up a fight. But this kid was so strong... all of those things in mind about why this kid was so strong. All of those suggestions? They were all of the above.

I returned Minccino to its Pokemon after it's been defeated and stood silent for a moment. I'd expected him to go already, but he didn't. He was probably recovering from our battle. Yeah, that's right. I made him work. "...you're strong, kid. You know what you believe in... your Pokemon shown that. I wish I was that strong... my head's a mess." I said, then stepped aside. "Go ahead and confront my lord. It's probably too late to stop him anyway. But feel free to see for yourself."

He just walked right past me like always. I was ready to just get off this tower and heal my Pokemon, but suddenly he called out to me from the stairs.

"Next time we meet up, you gotta tell me your name!"

What? Crazy kid... "How do you even know there's gonna be a next time, kid!" I yelled back, but he was already gone.

Strong as he is, he's a strange kid.

* * *

After Dragonspiral Tower, I felt my head getting to be more clear about what I really believed. What I thought was truly the right thing. What really confirmed it for me was when Ghetsis was in Opelucid City, giving his speech. I chose to be part of this because I really didn't feel like fighting in a sandstorm inside a castle made of sand. Some time has pasted a lot since Dragonspiral Tower and Opelucid... a few weeks maybe? No, more like a month. Joltik and Litwick evolved into Galvantula and Lampent, that I remember. We all gotten stronger in our own way, and I really felt like a true trainer. A week earlier I had the option from the Sages to either go to Relic Castle to test that kid again or meet with Ghetsis in Opelucid in about a week. And like I said earlier, I didn't feel like fighting a sandstorm, so I chose Opelucid.

Funny... it was where I started all this time, in Accumula Town. Standing tall with my fellow grunts, looking at all the people watching us with confusion and thought, Ghetsis' words echoing through all of our heads, and it was also where I saw that kid for the first time, eyes full of hope in the future. I was so sure that we were doing the right thing, that we were in this crusade in freeing the Pokemon for the Pokemon's sake.

Now... I stand with my views so different from back then.

I looked on from the crowd as Ghetsis started his speech about my Lord befriending the Legendary Pokemon and becoming the hero. The looks of confusion hasn't changed. From the corner of my eye I saw Ghetsis as he made his speech. To me, his words haven't changed, but there was something about Ghetsis that didn't sit right with me inside. It's like all around him is dark and all things wrong. I didn't get why I felt that way then. I didn't feel that way with him before, so why was I feeling it now? Was it because I have changed my perspective and I'm now seeing Ghetsis for what he truly is? Or was I reading too much into it again?

I moved my attention to the crowd, and I saw that kid again. Back then when I saw him in the back of the crowd he was a rookie trainer... now, he's a strong, experienced trainer with that same hope in his eye. Well, with all the time he thrashed me and the grunts over and over again, he'd better have experience!

My feet wouldn't move since I was assigned to that spot, but I never had this strong an urge to shut out everything Ghetsis was saying before now.

Ghetsis finished his speech and the crowd started to disperse as we took our positions and walked off with Ghetsis. For once I actually took a look back as I walked, seeing the crowd behind me disperse and I saw that boy still there, talking to the Gym Leader. I now knew what is truly right between humans and Pokemon... they depend on one another. It's true that there are people out there who treat Pokemon unfairly... I mean, look at me from the beginning. But that doesn't mean that it applies to every trainer out there. I can't say that after all that I've seen through this whole thing! There was no way! What we were doing... what Team Plasma is doing... separating Pokemon and Trainers for good in a Black and White world, it wasn't right. A part of me felt bad when thinking about Lord N, who believed in that so strongly. But no, that's the right thing to do. I'm sure of it now.

And that kid, being the holder of the other stone, was the one that has to stop him. I can't do it, and neither can the other grunts. Only that kid can do it.


	5. Chapter 5

It wasn't long since that Opelucid City speech. The rest of us grunts were ordered to stand by inside of Lord N's castle, while N was preparing to take the Pokemon League challenge. At first, some of the grunts (myself included) kept N company. You'd be surprised at how much of a kid N was inside. He had toy trains, basketball, building blocks... practically a kid's toy paradise in there if a kid went in there. At least, that was before we started to make our move. But when we were put on stand by, we didn't really see N anywhere. And we knew that he couldn't have slipped by without all of us noticing. Some of us started to worry a little (myself included) and others didn't really care too much. We were tempted to knock on his door and enter his room to check on him. But before we even got the chance to do so, we saw N walking down the hall in our direction.

Okay... breathe a sigh of relief, he didn't go AWOL.

"Sire! Are you prepared for your challenge against the Pokemon League!"

"The Champion stands no chance against our Lord N! Of course he's prepared!"

N only responded to their cheers with a thin smile. "Rest assured, all of you. I will head to the Pokemon League and defeat the Champion! Be patient a little longer, I will achieve my dream. A dream of a world for Pokemon alone. Soon, that world will become a reality!"

The grunts cheered, and I could only respond with a forced, small smile. It wasn't a fake smile, I couldn't show a fake smile to N even if I tried. I respected him too much to do that. But it wasn't a genuinely satisfied smile either. No, not with what I've recently realized. I didn't have it in me to question his beliefs then and there. I couldn't, and I felt bad that I couldn't. That was the other hero's role, not mine. A stupid mindset, I know. So instead, I just asked: "Are you sure you're okay? I mean, we were getting a little worried there."

"There's no need to worry, but I thank you for your concern. Now, I must go to the Pokemon League, to realize my dream." N walked off towards the exit to go down to the Pokemon League while the grunts cheered him on. He looked as determined as I ever seen him before. It was amazing how strong he was to committing to his beliefs as long as he has. That's what I respected the most about him I think. But still, I couldn't help but wonder about something. Blame my growing curiosity for this. I started to walk away from the crowd of grunts and head towards N's room. It was okay, us grunts could enter it as we pleased. It wasn't like the Throne Room at the top floor.

Minccino released itself from its pokeball and hopped on my shoulder again. It looked at me while I was walking, and I knew I looked perplexed or something like that. "I'm just wondering about something. I can't help it, Minccino." Go up the stairs, and turn the corner. The first room to the left was N's room. I entered it, and for the most part...

The room was a mess.

The train set was all jumbled up and building blocks were everywhere. In fact, one of the train part was found in the basketball hoop. I swear I would've expected the basket strings to split. In fact, most of toys looked like it was thrown all around all over the place. Good thing his room was just a big place, otherwise I would've had a hard time moving around in there. Minccino, ever the neat freak in nature, jumped off my shoulder to pick up some of the toys to clean the place a little. I just stood there looking around the room. The thought of N throwing toys all around in a tantrum-like fashion bothered me a lot. That's what it looked like to me. But he was a strong battler ready to beat the Champion and the Elite Four. There was no reason for him to be upset! But then again, his smile was relatively thin when he smiled at us grunts. Was he...?

I absently picked up the basketball near my foot for a moment, lost in thought. "N... did you have your doubts too?"

* * *

This was it. The final showdown.

The way to know that N defeated the Champion was that if the castle moved from the ground. As long as I've been in Team Plasma, the castle's always been underground, away from view and under everyone's noses. It was around the Pokemon League for crying out loud! How undercover could it get?

Anyways, while I was waiting around pacing like a maniac, I talked to some of the other grunts inside of the castle. It turns out that some of them were feeling the same thing I was. No, not the anxious part. The part about if we were doing the right thing or not. Some of them didn't want to free their Pokemon, for the reason that they bonded with them already. There was this one girl with a Patrat. She didn't think she was going to get attached because of what we stood for, but the Patrat liked her and she bonded with it. Now she didn't want to let it go.

"I don't know how this happened to me, but... I don't want to let my Pokemon go." she said in an unsure tone.

So I said in response: "So don't let it go. Live with it, you're both happy together aren't you? If you let it go, you'll both be pretty sad."

The girl looked up at me, not paying attention to the Patrat that was clinging to her leg. "But then, what are we going to do when Lord N issues the order to free all Pokemon?"

"Well..."

At that point, the room started to shake and we all fell to the ground. Actually, the whole hall - no the whole castle - started to shake. Like an Earthquake or something like that! I was grabbing tables in order to keep myself from shaking all around the room! The girl that was with me was at the corner somewhere nearby.

"M-MOOTHHER OF ARCEUSSSS WHAT'S HAPPENING HEEEERE?!"

"TH-THE CASTLE IS M-M-MOVING UP! L-L-LORD N MUST HAAVE BEATEN THE C-C-CHAMPION AND MET UP WITH THE HOLDER OF THE OTHER S-STOOONE!"

"W-WAIT. THAT KID IS HERE TOOOO?! OH WHAT LUCK." And I really meant what I said too. "WHEN IS THIS GONNA S-STOP?!"

"I DON'T KNOOOOW! BUT IT'S MAKING ME D-DIZZY!"

"SCREW BEING DIZZY! THIS IS M-MAKING ME SICK!"

The rumbling kept going on for about a few more minutes. When it stopped I was already hunched over on the floor in a fettle position, I still felt like I was being shaken up. That is the last time I stay inside a shaking castle moving up from the ground! Minccino, who's been out this entire time, tried to tickle my nose with its tail. And well, anyone could wake up with something fuzzy touching their nose. "Ack! Minccino, I'm okay! I'm awake, quit it!" I said swatting away its tail from my nose. Minccino just sat down with a triumphant look on its face.

I rubbed my eyes a little, trying to remember what just happened as I was freaking out as the castle was moving. How long was I in that spot anyway? "Wait a minute... the castle is up in the surface. That means that N and the kid...!" I gasped at this thought. N won against the Champion! And that kid must be here too! Oh crap... wait! This is a good thing! If anyone can stop N despite his strong beliefs, that kid can! I got up from the floor and shook my head around to snap out of my daze. Then I stepped out of the room without a word, with Minccino following after me.

And as if on cue, that kid was right in front of me!

"Whoa! Kid, you sure know how to pop out to nowhere!" I gasped. Geez, I could have ran into him if I didn't look right then. But with all kidding aside, this situation was serious for all of us. I looked to the direction he was going: the Throne Room where N was supposed to be. "Hey kid, looks like this is the last stretch you get to deal with us, regardless of who wins this. If N wins, then Pokemon and Humans will be separated in a Black and White world. Pokemon will be at peace, free from all oppression." He opened his mouth to speak, to say that's not going to happen or something alone those lines, but I held my hand up in a 'Let me finish, N's not doing anything until you get there' motion.

"But in all honesty, I hope that you're the one who comes out winning."

He looked a bit surprised, hearing that coming from me. "Why do you say that? Not that I'm complaining or anything."

I scoffed a bit since it sounded kinda funny to me. I don't know, blame my odd sense of humor. "Because I'm not blind to the world around me. Not anymore. I used to believe that Team Plasma was doing the right thing in liberating the Pokemon. But really, most of us are just a pack of thieves and hypocrites. It's pretty sad. But you gotta know that N isn't like those guys at all." I said. "N truly believes that Pokemon are his friends. More so than any of the other guys around here, and us grunts are pretty friendly towards him. I don't know him that well to know what's going on in his head, but I can tell you that he will give it his all to make his ideals reality."

I looked straight at him, taking my hood down. "But you're strong to your truth too. Pokemon and humans live together in harmony, it's what makes the world most happy. And if that harmony's broken, both sides are gonna crumble without the other. I've learned that from my own journey here, and from battling with you over and over. Maybe all of those beatings were what I needed!" I laughed a little at this, but I was still pretty serious. I then stepped out of his way towards the path to the Throne Room. "Go kid, go on and save this world. Show N the real truth about Pokemon and Humans alike."

I started to walk, but then I stopped for a moment. "Oh, before I forget. You did say that you wanted to know my name next time we'd meet up. The name's Lily, and the next time you see me, I'll be a Pokemon Trainer on the right path. Guess I'll leave you to save the world now, kid."

I couldn't see him going up to the Throne Room, but I knew I was going to see that kid sooner or later after this fight. Before I knew it, the Champion and another kid were there too, but I didn't care much. All I knew was that the world was going to be saved by this kid, and I might as well bear witness to that from here.

* * *

He did it. He stopped N and Ghetsis from separating Pokemon and Humans. I knew that kid could do it.

I went back home for a while and stayed there for a bit, but I eventually left again since the superstition thing got on my nerves a bit. My team, Minccino, Liepard, Swanna, Reuniclus, Galvantula, and Chandelure went off to do our little journey. It wasn't so bad after doing it for a long time since the castle, I found myself getting four badges already.

I flew to the beach spot in between Lacunosa Town and Undella Town to relax a bit. And after a while, I ran into someone I didn't expect, but who am I kidding... I was used to bumping into that kid.

"Hey, long time no see kid. Didn't expect you to be in this part of the world. Guess you can't tell it's me without my uniform, huh?" I said laughing.

"Nope, I can tell it's you." he said smiling.

"But you look well enough, kid. I'm glad," I said, looking at the ocean ahead. "I'm doing well, this new perspective of mine seems more like me, and not some fantasy that I'm trying to live up to. I bet you a lot of the other grunts that changed up are feeling the same thing."

"Have you talked to any of them since then? Or... even N?" he asked. I shook my head.

"I haven't seen most of my former teammates since then. And N disappeared, but I'm willing to bet he's alright. I am a little worried about him, sure. But he'll be fine, I believe in him. You do too, right?"

"Yeah! He'll be back someday, and I'll be there when he does!"

"Couldn't have said it better. Now enough talk of the past, how about a battle for old times sake. No team organizations, no pressure, no goals and no evil sneers. Just me and you, kid." I said, taking out a Pokeball.

"Sure! Wouldn't have it any other way!" he said, taking one of his Pokeballs in response.

"Then let's battle! I'm not holding back anything!"

I lost, sure. But I sure gave him a run for his money! Yep, this is the way it should be.


End file.
